As to going out and letting her eat others' food - she doesn't know what the food is yet and I'm not anti-animal foods on health grounds, so I don't know what the harm really is to her future veganism or to the animals (she's not eating so much she's driving these other people's food purchase choices). If I'm around non-vegans I do ask them not to give the kid non-vegan foods (if they have it out and it's obvious she's going to go for it) and people have always asked me first if they can give her stuff and been respectful when I say no. The only person who routinely F's this up is my mother who can't read labels.

More ETA: Mr. A and I just had this conversation the other day. He said, "Should I be as quick to snatch NV food from her as I am to make sure she doesn't eat something non-edible? Because I'm not."

I should add that she eats almost nothing non-vegan as a result of playdates and such because I actually almost exclusively hang out with vegan mamas or non-vegan mamas who hang with our otherwise vegan group. The only other kid we hang out with is her cousin and my in-laws obviously know what the deal is and are good about it. I just don't think I would be nutty about it at this point. A slice of pizza is totally different from a stray goldfish cracker (or, more likely, a non-vegan cheerio). By the time she actually has a sense of what is vegan and what isn't I think we'll have to be more clear about the boundaries. Of course I don't want her to get in the habit of taking other kids' food anyway.

Yes, I'm not letting her eat a tuna sandwich. Its more the grabbing a goldfish cracker that is dropped on floor or a bite of cake. I could avoid events where there is food and hover over my kid to make sure she never gets NV food in her mouth, but then my socializing and hers would be a lot less relaxed. And you know, I need some relaxation in my life. I did hover and pull her off a NV hot dog at a barbecue the other day.

I love how Mr. A put it. I will say that Malka begs so much less than Leela. Malka is singleminded in climbing everything and Leela is singleminded in eating everything.

_________________My oven is bigger on the inside, and it produces lots of wibbly wobbly, cake wakey... stuff. - The PoopieB.

I love how Mr. A put it. I will say that Malka begs so much less than Leela. Malka is singleminded in climbing everything and Leela is singleminded in eating everything.

That is super true. We certainly don't have to deal with it as much. Also, I have the luxury of just hanging out with vegans because I'm only home with her one day a week really and she doesn't have any organized playdates outside of that. The vegans are nice enough to organize around me :) Mr. A doesn't do playdates. If Malka eats NV food with him, it's because she found it among the wood chips at the playground.

speaking of goldfish, does anyone know what happened to the Eco-planet vegan goldfish? I've been looking around for them for weeks now and no one seems to have them in stock. I could make my own but I really don't feel like it.

we got given a great book the other day for the kids, by the woman who wrote "that's why we don't eat animals". this one is called "vegan is love" it covers zoos and circuses, so now elijah doesn't think we are freaks for not going to zoos and farms and circuses. coz we are never doing zoos. my mother in law is freaking out because we won't let them take the kids to the local zoo. at least now the "vegan is love" book is counter-acting her constant campaigning to go, especially since she keeps giving e books about happy zoos and shiitake.

For me veganism is about much more than food, it's part of my morals and ethics and just as with anything else I will raise my kids within that value system. For me not letting her eat a slice of pizza with cow's milk cheese on it is no different than not letting her eat a slice of cake or drinking soda when it comes to the food side of things. It's just part of our families boundaries of things we do and don't eat. No different than any other family or cultural or belief system that excludes particular foods from their diet. For us it's not policing or restrictive just part of the dynamics of our family.

speaking of goldfish, does anyone know what happened to the Eco-planet vegan goldfish? I've been looking around for them for weeks now and no one seems to have them in stock. I could make my own but I really don't feel like it.

When we were in Portland in August Food Fight had them. I think they have an online shop. So they are still around somewhere! I've been making a bunch of the cheeses quackers and freezing them.

Tofulish, we are going to the Catskill Farm Sanctuary. Although, we didn't reserve a zipcar early enough so we have to check later to see if there is actually one close enough for us to use without it being a pain to get to.

yep this is a timely issue for us, because we're going to San Diego soon and my bro and his family will be there too and they are certainly going to ask us to join them at the big zoo and SeaWorld. My gut feeling is "hell no" but then I feel I must come up with a kindly, non-judgey thing to say (as usual for this type of occasion, to temper my partner who immediately just says "fork SeaWorld, and we aren't ever going anywhere like that.")

I like the idea of "Our family doesn't do that", GP put it very nicely. However, I don't know what the future will be like: right now D shows absolutely no interest in food unless it is being eaten by me or her papa and refuses all sweets in general except Vive Le Vegan choc chip cookies, but what about when she's older and more autonomous? I feel torn - I was raised veg and was proud of being different, but not everyone is like that!

also, does anyone know if there's a farm sanctuary anywhere within a couple hours of SD? And BTW I would be so in for a For the Animals trip because we've been to Woodstock sanctuary but D was too little to really love on the animals, and I know she'd enjoy meeting some now,

also, does anyone know if there's a farm sanctuary anywhere within a couple hours of SD? And BTW I would be so in for a For the Animals trip because we've been to Woodstock sanctuary but D was too little to really love on the animals, and I know she'd enjoy meeting some now,

Audrey, they're having an awesome Thanksgiving potluck! Would you want to come, eat vegan pie and pet baby goats? (I still have to convince my husband to go :))

_________________My oven is bigger on the inside, and it produces lots of wibbly wobbly, cake wakey... stuff. - The PoopieB.

Looks like even Food Fight is out. I went to eco planet's website and it looks like all of their crackers are out of stock. In the meantime it looks like I'll be experimenting to vegan goldfish recipes. I really want a cute tiny goldfish cutter but I can't see paying $7 in shipping for a $7 cutter so it looks like i'll be making other cute shapes.

Hopefully veg*nism will be so common in our kids' generation that a veg*n kid can feel "different" if they like feeling different or "normal" if they prefer to feel normal.

This.

Some variation of "our family doesn't participate in that" will be our response to some things as well. The beginning of my teaching/childcare career was working with 4-6 year olds who were especially keen to notice how others' are different than themselves. "Families do things differently" "that's what they do at their house", etc. became frequently heard phrases and made good conversation starters about whether you were allowed to watch television, if you were a vegetarian, slept in your own bed, prayed before bed/meals, lived in a non-nuclear family (and many other things). We tried to instill the idea that *all* of these variations on family life are "normal".

Looks like even Food Fight is out. I went to eco planet's website and it looks like all of their crackers are out of stock. In the meantime it looks like I'll be experimenting to vegan goldfish recipes. I really want a cute tiny goldfish cutter but I can't see paying $7 in shipping for a $7 cutter so it looks like i'll be making other cute shapes.

Looks like even Food Fight is out. I went to eco planet's website and it looks like all of their crackers are out of stock. In the meantime it looks like I'll be experimenting to vegan goldfish recipes. I really want a cute tiny goldfish cutter but I can't see paying $7 in shipping for a $7 cutter so it looks like i'll be making other cute shapes.